[applause] Thanks so much. Well I want to thank everyone
for spending a few minutes with us this morning.

When Christie, Jess and Doug and I were considering whether or not I
would run for president, Christie suggested it was similar to Magellan's
decision. The boat was at the dock, it was ready to be launched,
and what would you do? Would you just simply walk away from it or
would you get in the boat and see where it took you. Well we got
in the boat, we took a great journey, but it's time to bring the boat back
to the dock, so today I'm announcing that we are ending this presidential
campaign.

Before I explain the reasons for that, I want to take an opportunity
to thank some folks, starting with my family. The support and love
of my wife Christie, who is my best friend, and our two sons, Jess and
Doug, who are our best work, has meant so much to me, and I'm extraordinarily
proud of the love and support that they've given to us during this campaign.
I'm extraordinarily proud of the friends, particularly from my hometown,
from my home state, and from my birthplace, who have been so instrumental
in this campaign, and I want to thank them from the bottom of my heart.

I want to say a special thank you to the staff. There are a lot
of young men and women who changed their lives, in some cases made significant
decisions to uproot themselves from their families to come here and work
on this campaign because they believe in me and they believed in the ideas
that we were going to put forward. They built the strongest organization
in the history of the caucuses at this point in time and it was an organization
taht I'm convinced would have been sufficient to have won the Iowa caucuses
were we to continue, but the reality is that we are not going to be able
to continue.

I also want to thank all those who have financially contributed to the
campaign. They were supporting with their resources and with their
advice and their friendship.

The reality however is that this process has become to a great extent
about money--a lot of money. And it is clear to me that we would
not be able to continue to raise money in the amounts necessary to sustain
not just a campaign in Iowa and New Hampshire, but a campaign across this
country. So it is money and only money that is the reason that we
are leaving today.

This has been an extraordinary journey for me and for Christie.
Walter Mondale suggested I would learn a lot about myself and a lot about
the country were I to do this and he was absolutely right. I learned
that we are a great nation, we are a nation that has challenges, but great
opportunities.

I'm proud of the campaign that we ran. I'm proud of the ideas
that we put forward. I'm particularly proud of the stance we've taken
on the war in Iraq. It is a war that needs to end now, not six months
from now, not a year from now, and I believe as a rsult of the strong stand
that we've taken that my hope and prayer is that this war does in fact
end sooner rather than later and that lives of American soldiers are saved.
I'm proud of the comprehensive energy plan that we've put forward.
The most comprehensive energy plan that I think has ever been put forward
by any presidential campaign. It is the domestic issue and
I suspect that those who remain in this race will continue to talk about
energy in a meaningful way and I hope that we've contributed to that debate.
I'm proud of the stance that we've taken on education reform. Clearly
this country needs to have creative and innovative thinkers, not just standardized
test takers. And so I'm proud of the ideas that we've put forward.

Some may suggest that this has been a failed enterprise. I would
say it has not been a failure. It may not have been as successful
as I had hoped and wanted, but I have grown as a person and I have grown
in my fondness and appreciation for the greatness of this country.
For those who see this as a failure, let me simply quote Theodore Roosevelt
who once said that the credit doesn't belong to the critic, the person
who says where things could have been done better; the credit really belongs
to the person who is in the arena, who if he fails, fails while daring
greatly, so that his soul is never with those cold and timid souls who
knew neither victory nor defeat. And I've been lucky to know both
and I appreciate the opportunity that all of the people who have been supportive
of this campaign and particularly the people of Iowa have given me, and
now we move on to bigger and better things. Thank you all.

[Vilsack then took questions].

PRESS RELEASE from Tom Vilsack
for President

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

February 23, 2007

Contacts:
Josh Earnest & Stephanie Bjornson

VILSACK WITHDRAWS AS PRESIDENTIAL
CANDIDATE

Will Continue Fight to Defund Iraq War,
Achieve Energy Security

Organization & Message Trumped
by Money

DES MOINES, IA -- Former DGA Chair and Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack
today announced that he is ending his presidential campaign, citing money
-- the so-called "invisible primary" -- as the only reason for getting
out of the race.

According to Vilsack:

"I am a very luck guy, blessed in love, family, friends, job,
and by this campaign.

"I have the boldest plan to get us out of Iraq and a long-term policy
for energy security to keep us out of future oil wars. Our campaign has
built the strongest organization here in Iowa, with almost 3,000 supporters
among Democratic caucus goers. We are organizationally positioned to win
the caucuses in January 2008. We have everything to win the nomination
and general election.

"Everything except money."

Media-expensive states that have moved, or are considering moving their
primaries or caucuses to early February 2008 include: Alabama, Arizona,
Arkansas, California, Delaware, Florida, Illinois, Michigan, Missouri,
New Mexico, New Jersey, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oklahoma and Utah.

Vilsack, a native of Pittsburgh and successful two-term governor of
Iowa, vowed to continue fighting for bold changes in America's international
and domestic policies:

"I am leaving one campaign, but I am not saying goodbye. I
will continue to fight for the outsiders and underdogs who are the backbone
of the Democratic Party and our country. And I will continue to fight to
end the war, achieve energy security and get our country back on track.
So stay tuned. The best is yet to come."

Vilsack, who said that he will not be endorsing any presidential candidate
at this time, urged his fellow Democrats to keep the presidential campaign
positive and to spend time campaigning in small communities and living
rooms across America.

"Retail political events in coffee shops, living rooms and
small towns are sometimes dismissed by insiders as relics of the past,
but they are wrong. It's critically important to our party and our country
that our candidates spend the time and energy visiting the small towns
and communities that make America great. And let us focus on the dreams
that unite us rather than be distracted by the differences of opinion that
sometimes separate us."

As a presidential candidate, Vilsack was the first to announce his candidacy,
the first to oppose the Bush-McCain Doctrine of escalating the war in Iraq
and the first to demand that Congress use its spending power under the
Constitution to bring U.S. fighting to an end in Iraq.

Today, Chris Cillizza of The Washington Post wrote:

"As for the ideas primary, Vilsack continues to issue the most
detailed policy proposals of anyone in the Democratic field; the latest
example was a comprehensive energy plan. ... [W]e're intrigued by the kind
of campaign he is running."

Last week, the San Francisco Chronicle called Vilsack's energy-security
plan "the most wide-ranging and detailed energy policy of any of almost
two dozen 2008 presidential hopefuls, Democratic or Republican."

Also last week, the Washington Post reported that Tom "has the
most gripping personal story -- he was orphaned and grew up in an abusive
family -- of any Democratic candidate."

Tom Vilsack was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in 1950. He never knew
his birth parents. Shortly after his birth, he was handed over to nuns
in a Catholic orphanage in Pittsburgh, where he stayed until he was adopted.
Vilsack was raised in a loving but troubled home. His parents, who successfully
triumphed over their problems, have served as a lifelong inspiration.

Vilsack married his college sweetheart, the former Christie Bell, and
moved to Mt. Pleasant, Iowa - Christie's hometown -- in the 1975. In the
past 19 years, Vilsack served successfully as mayor, state senator and
governor.

- 30 -

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President.Contributions to Tom Vilsack
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